Vipra
Vipra Shrivastava
Senior Manager - Content
Updated on Jul 25, 2024 17:57 IST
CAT 2019 question paper can help you in understanding difficulty level of the questions, marking scheme and change in exam pattern if any. The question paper of CAT 2019 was divided into three sections having both MCQs and non-MCQs. Download CAT 2019 question paper here.

Read all about CAT 2019 question paper including difficulty level, topic-wise weightage, RC topics for both slot 1 and slot 2 exam. Also download CAT question paper 2019 for free.

CAT 2019 question paper

CAT 2019 question paper was released by IIM Kozhikode for slot 1 and slot 2 on November 29. The questions papers were accompanied by official answer keys and question-wise solutions. Candidates preparing for CAT exam must go through the CAT previous year question paper to know the difficulty level of the questions, marking scheme and change in exam pattern if any. In this article, you will get CAT question paper 2019 PDF for free download along with analysis of both slot 1 and slot 2 papers. Read on.

The structure of CAT question paper 2019 is same as that of question papers of previous years as the CAT exam pattern has not changed in the last five years. The difficulty level and topic-wise weightage of questions were different from previous years, though. Take a look at the break-up of CAT 2019 question paper of slot 1 below:

Table of contents
  • CAT 2019 Question Paper: Section-wise break up of questions
  • CAT 2019 Question Paper: Slot 1
  • CAT 2019 Question Paper: Slot 2
  • Free CAT Mock Test for Practice

CAT 2019 Question Paper: Section-wise break up of questions

The question paper of CAT 2019 was divided into three sections having both MCQs and non-MCQs. The number of MCQs were more in all the sections and apart from VARC questions, all were of easy to moderate difficulty level.

Section

MCQs

Non-MCQs

Quantitative Aptitude (QA)

23

11

Logical Reasoning & Data Interpretation (LRDI)

24

8

Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (VARC)

27

7

Total

74

26

Also Read:

Q:   What is the structure of CAT question paper?
A:

Till 2014, there were only two sections in CAT. Quantitative Aptitude was clubbed with Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning was clubbed with Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension. In 2015, the Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning were clubbed together and Quantitative Aptitude and Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension made two individual sections. Since 2015, the sectional segregation has remained the same but the number of questions have come down from 100 to 66. The exam duration has also been reduced. Until 2019, the CAT exam was of 180 minutes and the total number of questions were 100. However, in 2020, the question paper structure was revised due to COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020, the total number of questions came down to 76. In 2021 and 2022, the number of questions were further lowered to 66. For the last two years, CAT is conducted for 2 hours, and the number of questions is 66. In CAT 2024 however, the number of questions were increased to 68. 

The latest CAT question paper structure is: Total questions: 68 Number of sections: 3 Order of sections - 1. VARC 2. DILR 3. Quantitative Aptitude Sectional time limit: 40 minutes VARC questions: 24 DILR questions: 22 Quantitative Aptitude questions: 22.

 

Q:   Which CAT slot has the toughest question paper?
A:
There is no pattern to which CAT question paper can be the toughest. The CAT question paper of every slot has unique questions. The examination body strives to maintain the same difficulty level of the paper across all slots but it may happen that a question can be more difficult from another. It is seen that, to keep the uniqueness of the question paper intact, the examination authority also changes the topic wise weightage a little bit across the exam slots. In most of the previous years, it is seen that the morning slot of the CAT exam is tougher than the rest two. However, candidates must not worry about the difficulty level of the slots as, the scores of all the candidates are normalised on a common scale to root out the possibility of advantage or disadvantage to any student due to difference in difficulty level. To know how the CAT scores are normalised, read this article: https://www.shiksha.com/mba/articles/understanding-cat-normalization-process-blogId-9386.
Q:   From where can I download CAT question papers?
A:

CAT question papers are released within a week of the exam in the form of a PDF as a response sheet and answer key. Candidates who have appeared for the test are able to access the CAT question paper and answer key. The question paper of every slot is released on the same day along with candidate response sheet and official answer to all question. If any candidate needs previous year CAT question papers for preparation purpose, then they can download them from Shiksha website. We have hosted last five years' CAT question papers for aspirants to download and practice. These official CAT question papers are available for download free. You can download the CAT question paper PDFs at this link: https://www.shiksha.com/mba/cat-exam-question-papers Candidates must check and practice the latest CAT question paper to know the latest exam pattern and difficulty level.

Explore more MBA exams with upcoming dates

MAT Feb 2026 PBT admit card

26 Feb '26

ATMA 2026 Result Declaration

28 Feb '26

GE & PI Shortlist Declaration

28 Feb '26

SRCC GBO 2026

28 Feb '26

BET 2026 Round 3 Submission De...

3 Mar '26

Objection Filing 2026 (Session 1)

23 Feb '26 - 26 Feb '26

SRMHCAT 2026 Offline Counseling

2 Feb '26 - 28 Feb '26

TANCET

LIVE
TANCET r...

25 Feb '26 - 28 Feb '26

Check live updates

APICET 2026 Registration Proce...

5 Feb '26 - 2 Mar '26

MAH MBA CET 2026 exam

7 Apr '26 - 8 Apr '26

CAT 2019 Question Paper: Slot 1

Given below is detailed explanation of CAT question paper 2019, slot 1, including section-wise distribution of sections, topics and difficulty level.

VARC section:

The VARC section CAT exam paper 2019 had a total of 34 questions (24 from RC and 10 from VA). There were 5 RC passages of 550-600 words. Four passages had five questions and one passage had four questions. The topics of RC passages were:

  1. British Folk Music
  2. Topophilia
  3. Emperor Penguins
  4. Internet Shopping and Choice Anxiety
  5. Origin of Story of Alladin

The VA section had 4 questions on parajumbles, three on out of context sentence and three on summary. Overall, the difficulty level of VARC was moderate to difficult.

DILR section:

The DILR section of CAT 2019 exam had 32 questions divided into eight sets. Out of eight, six sets were from Logical Reasoning and two sets were on Data Interpretation. Each set had four questions.

Logical Reasoning sets included:

  • Linear Arrangement in Super Market
  • Archery
  • Prizes to be put in 100 boxes
  • Coding
  • Streets Intersection
  • Dancers and Composers

Data Interpretation sets included:

  • Bar Chart + Table Crimes in States
  • Spider Chart on 5 vendors and 6 attributes

QA section:

The QA section of CAT question paper 2019 was of medium difficulty level. In total, it has 34 questions, out of which, 13 were easy, 13-15 were medium and 6-8 were difficult. This section had maximum number of TITA questions (11). The questions were from the following topics.

QA topics

Number of Questions

Arithmetic

13

Modern Math

8

Geometry

7

Algebra

5

Total

34

Get CAT 2019 Question Paper for free to know the types of questions asked in the exam and solve it to know the difficulty level. Click below to download.

CAT 2019 Question Paper

Download CAT previous year question paper PDFs

CAT 2019 Question Paper: Slot 2

The CAT question paper 2019 of slot 2 was same as slot 1 with marginal difference in difficulty level. Given below is detailed explanation of CAT 2019 question paper, slot 2, including section-wise distribution of sections, topics and difficulty level.

VARC section:

Cat 2019 question paper of slot 2 also had five RC passages with 24 questions and 10 VA questions. Out of five RC sections, four had five questions and one had four questions. Word count of all the RC passages was 400-500.  Apart from one passage all were easy to read but inferential in nature with very close options.

RC passages of slot 2:

  1. Dense Cities
  2. Google and Archaeology
  3. Distributing Bureaucracy
  4. Language& Culture
  5. British Colonial Policy

VA section had questions from the following topics

  • Jumbled Sentences
  • Contextual Odd Man Out
  • Paragraph Summary

DILR section:

The DILR section of slot 2 was also same as slot 1. The two DI sets on Scatter plot on Rainfall and spider chart on Profit/loss were easy and so was the set on Venn Diagram. Some of the sets were slightly tricky, like the ones on different rows/columns and teams with languages; while sets on tournaments, doctors and setting of the paper were difficult.

  • DI Sets
  • Scatter plot on Rainfall
  • Spider chart on profit/loss
  • Different rows/columns
  • Teams with languages
  • Tournaments
  • Doctors
  • Setting of the paper

QA section:

The QA section of CAT question paper 2019 slot 2 was much easier than that of last three years. A number of Arithmetic and Modern Math questions were easier. A number of questions had a mixture of concepts. Candidates had to qualitatively know various properties and concepts, and apply them accordingly to solve the questions. Like slot 1, this CAT paper too had 11 TITA questions in the QA section. The questions were from the following topics.

QA topics

Number of Questions

Arithmetic

13

Modern Math

6

Geometry

5

Algebra

10

Total

34

Practice:

Free CAT Mock Test for Practice

Check below free CAT Mock Tests by Shiksha for practice. Candidates can attempt these mocks to check their preparation level. 

CAT_Mock_Test_1 CAT_Mock_Test_1_Solutions
CAT_Mock_Test_2 CAT_Mock_Test_2_Solutions

Read More:

Videos you may like
About the Author
author-image
Vipra Shrivastava
Senior Manager - Content

Vipra Shrivastava is MA in English Literature from Delhi University with extensive experience in content writing of over 14 years. She has been handling content for Management, Accounting and Commerce streams for 8

Read Full Bio
Download Important Dates for MBA/PGDM Exams

News & Updates

Latest NewsPopular News

Explore Other Exams

29 Jan '26

XAT 2026 Cut Offs Release

16 Jan '26

XAT 2026 result

9 Jan '26

SNAP 2025 result announcement

20 Dec '25

SNAP 2025 session 3

Aug '26

NMAT 2026 Registration Window

Aug '26

NMAT 2026 Scheduling Window

17 Oct '24 -

5 Dec '24

IIFT 2025 registration and app...

26 Feb '26

MAT Feb 2026 PBT admit card

1 Mar '26

MAT Feb 2026 PBT

Jul '26

IBSAT 2026 Registration

27 Dec '26 -

28 Dec '26

IBSAT 2026 Exam Date

17 Feb '26

CMAT 2026 result

31 Jan '26 -

2 Feb '26

CMAT 2026 exam answer key obje...

7 Apr '26 -

8 Apr '26

MAH MBA CET 2026 exam

9 May '26

MAH MBA CET 2026 exam 2

Feb '26

TANCET registration window

Mar '26

TANCET admit card download

Mar '25

IRMASAT 2025 Final Result Anno...

Feb '25

IRMASAT Personal Interviews

The list of exams are recommended based on what other exams do the students in your area show interest in
qna

Student Forum

chatAnything you would want to ask experts?
Write here...

Answered 13 hours ago

The following steps are involved in filling CAT application form:

 

·       Registration and creating a login

·       Filling basic details

·       Filling academic details

·       Filling work experience

·       Uploading image and signature

·       Selecting IIMs and courses

·       Selecting test cities

·

...Read more

M

Manisha Singh

Contributor-Level 7

Answered 13 hours ago

There is no option to pay the fee of CAT 2026 application form in cash. The only mode of fee payment is online which includes debit card, credit card, net banking, UPI.

A

Anya B

Contributor-Level 7

Answered 13 hours ago

CAT 2026 registration and application link will be available at iimcat.ac.in website. Candidates will have to apply for the exam by visiting the exam website. 

78439220
Vipra Shrivastava

Contributor-Level 10

Answered 13 hours ago

CAT 2026 application form will be released in the first week of August 2026. CAT 2026 registration dates will be announced in the last week of July through an official notification.

P

Pallavi Gupta

Contributor-Level 7

Answered Yesterday

The MBA course at Master' Union School of Business, also known as PGP TBM course, accepts MUBAAT and SAT score for admission. It also accepts CAT exam, but the college has not released the cutoff details for the exam. The students must contact the admissions team of the college for details. 

C

Chandeep Singh

Contributor-Level 10

Answered Yesterday

Candidates have to wait for IIM Ranchi MBA CAT cutoff. Those who clear it become eligible for further scanning process. The candidates may have to visit the website and provide CATID (application sequence number), date of birth, and registered email as per CAT application. The waiting status appears

...Read more

M

Mohit Sharma

Contributor-Level 10

Answered Yesterday

IIM Ranchi MBA aspirants need to have a valid CAT score. The entrance test is expected to be held on Nov 29, 2026. Candidates taking the exam will be able to download admit cards online. It is generally released online in the first or second week of November. Candidates should stay updated with adm

...Read more

R

Raushan Piplani

Contributor-Level 10

Answered Yesterday

IIM Ranchi offer admission to its MBA courses based on CAT scores only. The candidates have to take this test and secure a valid percentile. IIMs release its cutoff based on which candidates are called for further selection rounds. There may not be any other provision for admission to the PG level c

...Read more

P

Piyush Anand

Contributor-Level 10

Answered 2 days ago

The students who wants to get admission into the MBA course must obtain minimum 50% in their UG degree. They have to appear for any one of the national level entrance exams for MBA course admissions such as CAT, MAT, XAT, CMAT, MAH-CET and ATMA exam. The minimum cutoff required in CAT exam is 50%. I

...Read more

C

Chandeep Singh

Contributor-Level 10

Answered 2 days ago

Students may get admission in IIM Bangalore with 95 percentile in CAT. But this is not enough to get a seat. The admission chances also depend on student's overall profile. This includes academic scores + performance in the selection rounds. Students can check the cutoff trends to know better.

A

Anupama Garg

Contributor-Level 10